Display



s. .JOSELOFF DISPLAY Nov. 24., 1959 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Nov. 16,1954

S. JOSELOFF DISPLAY Filed Nov. 16,1954

3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Nov. 24, 1959 s, JOSELQFF 2,913,840

DISPLAY s SheetsSheet s Filed NOV. 16, 1954 fizzy/4 United States Patent 2,913,840 i DISPIQAY Stanley Ioseloif, Westport, Conn. Application November 16, 1954, Serial No. 469,109. l Claim. c1. 40 -2s.1. r

This invention relates generally to display devices, and.

more particularly to such having structure suitable for multiple purposes. a l

With the growth of self-service merchandising, as for example, of the super-market type, large areas of selling floor space are not attended by store personnel. This puts upon the patron the burden of locating different articles, and it therefore becomes desirableto provide means which is easily visible, and which enables the patronto directhimself to a particular sales counter, It is therefore among the principal display or island. objects of the present invention to provide structure for these purposes. u r

Because .it frequently becomes necessary 'to change store traffic pattern and consequently location of merchandising, flexibility is important, and it is another object of the present invention to provide structure whereby the indicia for identifying the merchandise is readily changed. On occasion, it may be desirable to substitute for written material indicating the adjacent.

merchandise, a .physical representation or example of the items; being sold thereat, and the present structure afi rdsoppo wn y. o hi .a wel .[Anotherobject herein lies in the provision of structure of the-class described, which affords independent illumination so that the same maybe independently con;

that the speaker elements producing such" sound, while:

easily aimed and baffled, are relativ elywinconspicnous and protected from dust and dirt H I As mentioned bove, sincelarge areas are devoidof personal surveillance, it i s :.;another object of the invention to provide means for detecting theft and pilferag'e,

and to discourage the same.

A still further object herein lies inthe provision of structure vofthe ;classdescribed, which is simple and efficient, so that the samemay be manufactured in large.

quantities at low cost with a corresponding wide distribution and-use. .1 r t A feature of the inventionresides in the'utility of the secondaryflbody"element which may have multiple use' to accommodate to various conditions of use."

Another fea ture herein lies in the adjustability of the structurewith respectto the central support element to adapt the same to differentlocations andconditions. These objects and other incidental ends and-advantages jwilhmore fully appear in the progressio f" this, disclosure, and be pointed out in the appendedclaim.

ing thesystem including one of the devices as set up,

In the drawings, in which similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views:

,Figure l is a fragmentary view in perspective showing a preferred embodiment of the invention.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary view in perspective showing one of the ways in which the device may be integrated with a merchandise island or similar display or shelf arrangement.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view as seen from the plane 3- 3 on Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a plan view of the bottom wall element and associated structure as seen from the plane 4-4 on Figure 3.

1 Figure 5 is a fragmentary elevational view, partially exploded, of the upper portion of the primary body element. V

Figure 6 is a top plan view of the cover element.

Figure 7 is an elevational view of a second body element, and associated structure and showing an alternate form thereof.

Figure 8 is a side elevational view of Figure 7.

Figure 9 is a fragmentary view showing the lower end of one of the support arm elements as connected to the upper end of the central support element. Figure 10 is a fragmentary perspective view of an indicia carrier member.

Figure 11 is an enlarged, fragmentary horizontal sec-' tional view as seen from the plane 1 111 on Figure 1.

Figure 12 is a fragmentary view in perspective showwith an alternate form of camera mechanism.

Figure 13 is a perspective view showing a camera member as removed from the rest of the structure.

Figure 14 is a schematic electrical diagram for the sytem.

In accordance with the invention, the display, generally indicated'by reference character 10, comprises broadly:

a primary body element12, a cover element 14, a plurality of secondary body elements 16, a plurality of support arm elements 18, a central support element 20, illumination means 22, sound producing means 24 and photographic recording means 26.

The primary body elementpreferably includes a bottom wall 28, a top wall 29 and a plurality of side walls 30. The walls 30 have large openings so that the outermost portions of said walls, at the sides thereof, may be provided with grooves 31 within which are slidably disposed glass plates 32. Such plates may be made of other light transmitting material. Permanently disposed within the primary body element is the illumination means 22,

whichmay take any suitable form, as for example, an incandescent bulb or a fluorescent tube.

The top and bottom walls are preferably permanently connected to 'the side Walls, the top wall being provided with a central orifice 34 through which the illumination.

means may be reached and through which the sound producing means may also be serviced when required.

The cover element is adapted to detachably engage within the orifice 34, and forms a closure therefor.

The primary body element is mounted upon a bracket 35 terminating at its lower portion in a union member 36. The bracket serves-to hold the primary body element in.

. an elevated position in respect to the union member 36.

edposition with respect to the central support element 20.

The union member 36 may be rotatably and vertically adjusted upon the upper end 37 of the central support element 20. Means such as the set screw 38may be used to hold the primary body element in a predeterminedadjust- Patented Nov. 24, t 1959 rue lowerehdwof the 'element 20 is preferably provided with-a pair of--juxtaposed slots 40, so that a pair of legs 41 may be formed which straddle the upright fin 42 normally disposed upon the top member 43 of a display unit 44. The'legs' 41 may be's'ecured' t6 the fin 42 by screws 144 (Figure 12) or'adjustable clamping'meansmay be'tliere provided. v 'Iurning'now' to the secondary body elements, since these are substantiallyidentical;' a detailed-'descriptionof' one will suffice for both. This applies asw'ell to the support arm element'18. The secondary body elementpretera'bly com'prisesa vertical main plate '45 to'which m'aybe detachably secured a pair of slotted side supports 46am" 47. These have the slotsidownw ardly' converging toward the plate 45 so that the indicia carrying ele'ment 49'may be retained there bygravitywiththe lower edge 50thereofabutting againstthe upper surface 51'of said plate 45. In view of the fact that the plate 45 is provided withj'a pltirality' ofv orifices, other displays may be detachably engaged therewith.

The element 49 may have securedto the front surface thereof a plurality t-indiciacarrying means 5:3 (s'ee Figure 10) which are U-shaped in vertical section so that cards or letters'may be slidably disposed therein in a well-known manner. v I

Q i o t s d orifise fitlm jbs e t n a hook members 55, preferablyfof S shape'whichin turn engage in the orifices56fof the cross arm 57 of the sup; port arm element18. The lower end 58' of the support arm element 18 is adapted to be'rotatablydisposed within the socket 59 which forms a part of the union member 36. By virtue of the fact that the arm 18 is radially offset a distance siifiicient to adequately clear the primary body element 12 the secondary body element 16, and'thesupport arm element 18 maybe rotatably adjusted (Figure 9) to place the elements in suitable position with respect to each other. V I, v ,I n accordance with the invention,,there is provided photographic recording means, generally indicated by ref,- erence character 26. Thus, as shown in Figures 7 and 8, the upper portions of the indicia carrying elements 49 may be altered in construction to appear as shown in Figures 7 and 8 where the indicia carrying elements 49a and 49b have secured upon the rear or inner surface Thus, the conductors'63 and 64 may lead from a source of power (not shown) and connect with the step-down transformer 65, the secondary circuit of which includes a switch 66, as well as conductors 67 and 68 which are connected to the solenoid previously mentioned.

In Figures 12 and 13, a slightly different type of camera 60d and 60b is shown, and which is mounted on the forward surface of the upper portions of the indicia carrying elements 490 and 49d. In structure and in operation, these cameras resemble the cameras 60 and 61, except that they are more visible and have,,by virtue of such display, a deterring eifect againstpilferage and theft.

In addition to the conductors 67 and 68 going to each individualunit 10,- there are. pairs of conductors 6 9 and 70, and 71 and 72. All of these conductors, namely, 67- 72, inclusive, may be incorporated in a single sheath to form a cable in a well-known manner. Thus, the input- 73' and the amplifier 74 may be located in a remote booth 75, as may also bethe switch 66. Any desired number of the units 10 may be distributed about the sales area 76,

. 4 and" interconnected so that the speakers 24 may" carry announcements or music which is fed to the input 73 by v the operator 80. Where desired, such intelligence may be from recordings of the tape type, records, or other types. The conductors 71 and 72 may carry energy to the illumination means 22.

Thus, the device 10, in operation, carries conveniently displayed the indicia carrying, elements 49, and the others corresponding thereto, which may contain permanent or temporary information concerning the products 81 which are in the display units adjacent or connected to the device 10. The'support arm elements 18, as has been described, may be rotated'to positions where they may be more readily seen or where they may be in a better position to take pictures of the surrounding area, as mentioned above. The illumination means 22 is adapted to cast rays outwardly through the transparent plates 32, which illumination may serve to light up the secondary body elements-16, as well as the indicia carrying element's 49.

dicia'will also be illuminated. The means 22'serve also as excellent night lights when all the other illumination; in the'store has been extinguished, and such means 22 inthe individual units 10 may be remotely controlled in a suitable manner.

The speakers 24 in each of the units are so constructed and arranged that the sound is directed downwardly and outwardly horizontally about 360 degrees, while the interior of the primary body element 12 serves to partially absorb the vibrations directed inwardly from the conceale'd surface of the speaker cone acting as an acoustic bafile, thus improving the sound quality and propagation.

The camera units acting as photographic recording means may, in addition to being remotely controlled, for

individual exposure, be constructed and arranged to take pictures in sequence with predetermined time intervals between the pictures, thus requiring no manual control.

It may thus be seen that I have provided a novel and useful display, which by virtue of the construction and arrangement thereof, serves multiple purposes compactly and at a reasonable low cost, enabling the units to be disposed about a sales area in the number of positions required to provide adequate coverage from the viewpoint of light, sound, information disclosure, plus photographic I wish' it to be understood'that I do not desire to be limited to the exact details of construction shown and described, for obvious'modifications will occur to a person skilled in the art to which the present invention relates.

I claim:

Display unit construction adapted for u'se'in connection with a merchandise counter comprising; a primary hollow body element having light transmitting side wall members and a bottom wall having an opening; illumination means positioned between said side walls and above said bottom wall, a sound producing means disposed upon said bottom wall and opposite said opening; a central support element-having means to engage said body element, and second means for detachably connecting the same to said merchandise counter; a secondary body element, an arm element swingablyconnecting said secondbody element to said central support element proximate to andwithin the'field of the light passing through a light transmittingsidewallmernber, and indicia carrying" As shown in Figure 12, additional in-' dicia 83 may be placed upon the plates 32, andsuch inmeans detaehably and adjustably connected to said secondary body element.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Lowd Sept. 28, 1920 

